1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates generally to a welder station for auger repair and to a method for repairing augers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Soil boring is performed to obtain data on soil and rock for use in designing foundations for bridges, culverts, retaining walls and other structures as well as for support for pavements. Soil borings are accomplished by drilling an auger into the ground and performing tests on the soil and rock that is removed. The augers are tubes made of durable steel with a helical flight, or blade, on the outside surface. Machinery, that is generally operated by a drilling crew, is used to turn the auger as it is driven into the ground for obtaining the soil and rock samples. The abrasive action of the soil and rocks rapidly wears down the auger flight, making the auger less effective and putting stress on the drilling equipment.
As a result of the rapid auger wear, augers are replaced frequently. This practice becomes quite expensive, however. Attempts have been made to repair the worn augers, such attempts including welding steel onto the auger to reconstruct the flight or welding a bead onto the worn flight. Such work has been performed with the auger lying on the ground or floor with the welder operator bending over the auger. As the repair proceeds, the auger is rolled on the floor. This practice is unsafe in that it may lead to back injuries for the welder operator and potentially to burns for the welder operator and anyone who might contact the rolling hot auger. The resulting weld tends to be uneven, requiring grinding with hand tools for shaping the welded flight. The auger repair process is time consuming and inefficient.